Nonstop flight route between Palo Alto, California, United States and Columbia, Missouri, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from PAO to COU:
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- About this route
- PAO Airport Information
- COU Airport Information
- Facts about PAO
- Facts about COU
- Map of Nearest Airports to PAO
- List of Nearest Airports to PAO
- Map of Furthest Airports from PAO
- List of Furthest Airports from PAO
- Map of Nearest Airports to COU
- List of Nearest Airports to COU
- Map of Furthest Airports from COU
- List of Furthest Airports from COU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County (PAO), Palo Alto, California, United States and Columbia Regional Airport (COU), Columbia, Missouri, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,620 miles (or 2,607 kilometers).
A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the relatively short distance between Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County and Columbia Regional Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | PAO / KPAO |
Airport Name: | Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County |
Location: | Palo Alto, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 37°27'39"N by 122°6'53"W |
Operator/Owner: | County of Santa Clara |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 4 feet (1 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from PAO |
More Information: | PAO Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | COU / KCOU |
Airport Name: | Columbia Regional Airport |
Location: | Columbia, Missouri, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 38°49'5"N by 92°13'10"W |
Area Served: | Columbia, Missouri |
Operator/Owner: | City of Columbia |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 889 feet (271 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from COU |
More Information: | COU Maps & Info |
Facts about Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County (PAO):
- Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County (PAO) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County's relatively low elevation of 4 feet, planes can take off or land at Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
- The VOR approach is almost impossible to get from Air Traffic Control if the aircraft is GPS-equipped, because of the conflict with airline traffic in San Jose International Airport.
- The furthest airport from Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County (PAO) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,365 miles (18,289 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- Facilities at this busy towered airport include multiple aircraft repair shops and a staffed terminal including West Valley Flight Club, Advanced Flyers, Peninsula Avionics, Sundance Flying Club, Stanford Flying Club, Rossi Aircraft, and Palo Alto Fuel Service.
- The closest airport to Palo Alto Airport of Santa Clara County (PAO) is Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SE of PAO.
Facts about Columbia Regional Airport (COU):
- Because of Columbia Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 889 feet, planes can take off or land at Columbia Regional Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
- On October 22, 2012, it was announced by Columbia mayor Bob McDavid that American Airlines and the City of Columbia reached an agreement that was approved by the Columbia City Council for air service from Columbia Regional Airport to Chicago O'Hare and Dallas/Fort Worth beginning in February 2013.
- Columbia Regional Airport (COU) has 2 runways.
- The furthest airport from Columbia Regional Airport (COU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,886 miles (17,519 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- The closest airport to Columbia Regional Airport (COU) is Jefferson City Memorial Airport (JEF), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) SSE of COU.
- The 2013 Federal sequester will result in the closure of the airport's contract control tower and will require pilots to rely on air traffic controllers from other area airports.